"The RAF left Chivenor (now a Royal Marine logistics base) because in 1991 I'd opted for a Civil Service posting to Barnstaple solely because it was near to Chivenor and the room I was to occcupy overlooked the approach."
Chris,
As an ex-pupil of both Pilton Primary and Barnstaple School for Boys, I'm trying to picture where this could be. The approach used to be right overhead St. Mary the Virgin - well north of Barum proper.
Slightly off topic, what happened to the old aircraft at the North Devon Flying Club at Wrafton? I seem to remember peering through a side window of the hangar & seeing what I beleive was a Miles Aerovan and at other times a red Magister in the pattern glimpsed from the railway.